Jamilu Sa'idu, aka Dan-Masukudi, alleges that the police in Kaduna under the directives of Commissioner, Musa Garba, were hunting him and intimidating his family.
A musician, Jamilu Sa'idu, has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, over his alleged harassment by the police in Kaduna State.
Mr Sa'idu, popularly known as Dan-Masukudi, through his lawyer, Ajayi Olowo, alleged that the police in Kaduna under the directives of Commissioner, Musa Garba, were hunting, trailing and intimidating him and his family.
The singer had criticised Governor Uba Sani in his new track titled 'In Bazaka Iyaba Kasauka' (resign if you cannot govern).
The music is widely viewed as a jibe at the governor following his complaint about the debts he inherited from former governor Nasir El-Rufai.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Sani said his administration was finding it difficult to pay workers' salaries because of the repayment of the huge debts.
The governor said the administration inherited $587 million, N85 billion, and 115 contractual liabilities from the administration of Mr El-Rufai.
Mr Sani lamented that due to the rise in the exchange rate, the state was paying back almost triple what was borrowed.
Police harassment
Mr Sa'idu said the police arrested his brothers-in-law when they could not find him and impounded his vehicle.
"On the 12th of April, 2024 after our client had travelled out of Kaduna on a musical business engagement, the police had besieged the residence of our client at Rigachikun in Kaduna city and requested his wife and other family members present to produce him even as there was no warrant of arrest and or notice of any alleged offence in vogue.
"The police thereof whisked away two brothers-in-law of our client: Messrs Mukaila Shehu Ajiya; and Abdulrahaman Shehu Ajiya. In addition, the police impounded the vehicle of our client: a red Ford SUV with registration number(Kaduna) GWT 292 AA, which he had left in the custody of the brothers-in-law," Mr Sa'idu said in the petition.
He said, though, his brothers-in-law was released on bail, the police continued their manhunt for him allegedly at the behest of Governor Sani, who he alleged found some tracks in his latest album distasteful.
"We most humbly draw the attention of your good office to the imperative settled position of the law that the Police Force cannot be used to settle civil disputes, nay personal scores among the citizens wherein no crime has been committed as in the instant situation.
"In the light of the foregoing, we respectfully request your good self to call the CP Kaduna to order to desist from further being used by the politicians to settle personal scores, particularly as currently being done to please the sitting Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Uba Sani, at whose instance our client and his family are being petrified and harassed with the apparatus of the Nigeria Police Force.
"If the Commissioner of Police Kaduna State Command, trailing, intimidating, harassing our client and his family and releases his vehicle (including personal effects therein) unconstitutionally, we have been mandated to take necessary further steps within the due process of the law, the lawyer wrote for Mr Sa'idu.
But in his reaction, the police spokesperson in Kaduna, Mansir Hassan, said the petitioner cannot stop the police from carrying out their constitutional responsibilities.
Mr Hassan said the police did not have in their custody the vehicle of the petitioner as alleged.
The police spokesperson said someone was being investigated and the police arrested some people who were connected to him, adding that both the vehicle and the suspects had been released.
Also responding to Mr Sa'idu's allegations, the spokesperson of the governor, Muhammad Shehu, said the governor was not behind the arrest alleged by the petitioner.
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Mr Shehu said the security agents in the state are just performing their constitutional duty of maintaining law and order.
"The governor was not aware of such an incident and did not order the arrest of anyone," he said.
Other critics of the governor arrested
One Aisha Galadima was reportedly picked up by the State Security Service (SSS) from her Kaduna residence on 14 April over a Facebook post criticising Governor Sani. She was released on Monday.
Also, over the weekend, an attempt to allegedly arrest Lawal Buba, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), without a warrant was resisted by members of his community in Zaria. The development followed Mr Buba's suspension from the APC by the Tudun Wada Ward on Monday allegedly over his criticism of Governor Sani.
The Kaduna State Women Leader of the APC, Maryam Suleiman, was suspended earlier for accusing Governor Sani of ingratitude to Mr El-Rufai.
